Children&#39;s wheeled toy



March 25, 1952 M. D. sAcKs 2,590,457

CHILDRENS WHEELED TOY Filed Dec. 21, 1949 Patented Mar. 25, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE CHILDRENS WHEEIJEDTOY Milton 1). Sacks, New York, NY.

Application December 21, 1949,.Se1ialNo. 134,203

2 Claims.

This invention relates to childrens wheeled toys, and more particularly to a type which will cause an object, suchas a ball, to be tossed back and forth through a guided path as the toy is pulled-or otherwise propelled across the floor or other surface. a

An object of the invention is to provide a toy of this character which will be of simple and inexpensive construction; which will operate-n smoothly, and will be constructed to withstand considerable use and abuse by the child.

More particularly, the invention contemplates the provision of a base supported on freely-movable Wheels, the base being provided with an upwardly extending curved rod on which a ball or other object is slidable, the wheels of the vehicle being provided with laterally extending resilient impellers, one or the other of which engages the ball in a manner to cause it to be tossed or propelled from one end of the curved rod to the other. Th result of this arrangement is that on the continuous forward movement of the vehicle, the ball is tossed or propelled back and forth in a reciprocating manner on the guide rod on the top of the toy and in a manner to amuse and interest the child engaged in pulling the toy.

These and other objects are attained by the invention, a more particular description of which will hereinafter appear and be set forth in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is .disclosed, Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the toy constructed in accordance with the invention; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, with one of the wheels fragmentarily shown and the ball being shown in section and in an intermediate position; Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the toy, with a portion of the same shown in section, and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of one of the wheels, showing one of the ball-impellers thereon.

Referring to the drawing, I indicates the base or platform of the toy vehicle, the same being supported by four wheels, the front wheels being shown at 2 and 3 and the rear wheels at 5 and 6.

on the loopis a ball I I. .erably of lightweight, celluloid construction, is

.rod or loop 8'passes.

'2 wheel 5. The .loop 8 thus extends angularly across the top of the base I and slidably mounted Said ball, which is pref- 'inner side of the front wheel 3 is the front impeller-finger I5 which operates toengage against and under the ball when the ball is located at the front end 9 of the loop, to thereby raise'and toss the ball rearwardly along the loop to its rear position. The impeller-finger I5 consists of a loop-shaped member of thin, flat and highlyflexible spring metal so that it is very resilient and'can be flexed, in the manner to be described, to exert a snapping action against the ball to elevate and shift it rearwardly along the guide loop 8. Located on the under side of the base or platform I is an inclined surface I6, and as the Wheel -3 is rotated, the finger I5 will engage against such inclined surface I6 and will be flexed as seen in Fig. 3. As the wheel continues its rotation, the finger I5 will be sprung past the edge of the platform with a spring or snap action, and it will engage against and pass under the ball II, tossing it upwardly and along the loop 8 until it reaches the rear end of the loop and rests upon the platform at that location.

Provided on the rear Wheel 5 is an impellerfinger I3 which is similar in construction to the finger I5 on the front wheel 3. The rear finger 13 engages behind the ball I I as the toy is moved forwardly, to thus toss the ball upwardly and along the loop 8 to its forward position thereon in readiness for engagement by the front finger I5. A notch I 4 is provided in the edge of the base or platform to permit the passage of the finger I3 as the finger passes downwardly in the rotation of the wheel 5.

From the foregoing, the operation of the toy will be readily understood. It may be moved along the floor or other surface by being pulled by the string I I, or it might be pushed from behind by a rod or rearward extension from the platform I. Assuring that the ball II is located at the rear end II] of the curved rod 8, as shown in Fig. 1, it will be clear that as the rear wheel is rotated, the impeller-finger l3 thereon will be brought up behind and then moved under the ball I I, striking the curved face thereof and causing the ball to be tossed upwardly and along the rod 8 to reach and rest upon the front part of the platform I at the forward end 9 of the rod 8. After the impeller-finger [3 on the rear wheel passes below the ball and tosses the same as above described, the finger then moves downwardly through the notch 14.

As the front wheel 3 is rotated by the forward movement of the vehicle across the floor, the impeller-finger on said wheel comes into contact with the inclined surface I6 on the under side of the platform I, the finger being flexed thereby as it is moved across said surface, as clearly shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3. The finger [5 next moves past said surface [6 and springs smartly against and under the ball H which at this time is at the front end of the curved rod or loop 8, and as it snaps against and under the ball II, it will act to toss the ball upwardly and along the rod 8, causing the ball to slide along the rod to the rear end of the same to the position shown in Fig. 1. The ball is next tossed upwardly and forwardly by the rear-impeller finger l3 to repeat the cycle described.

In the forward movement of the vehicle across a floor or other support, all of the wheels of the vehicle are rotated in the same direction, while the ball is tossed back and forth or recipro'cated. The effect secured is interesting and amusing to the child and the device operates smoothly as it is moved across the fioor.

The impeller-fingers l3 and I5 are made of extremely flexible and springy material and thus are not readily damaged. If the device is moved backwardly, the front finger I5 will, due to its extreme flexibility, readily spring past the edge of the platform I without damage to the finger.

Having described one embodiment of the invention, it is obvious that the same is not to be restricted thereto, but is broad enough to cover all structures coming within the scope of the an- 'ne'xed claims.

one end of the loop to the other, said ball normally resting on the platform at either end of the loop, one of the front wheels being provided with an inwardly-extending spring impeller-finger, means on the platform adjacent said finger for causing fiexure of the finger by engagement of the same with said means whereby said finger, when moving away from said means, will snap against the ball and toss the same upwardly and along the loop to the rear end of the loop, and means on one of the rear wheels for then engaging the ball and tossing it to cause it to move along the loop to the front end of the loop, all of the wheels of the vehicle being rotated in the same direction as the vehicle is moved forwardly over a supporting surface, and the tossing of the ball occurring during such forward movement of the vehicle.

2. A toy comprising a vehicle having a platform mounted between a pair of front wheels and a pair of rear wheels, a wire loop fixed in the platform and extending upwardly on a curve therefrom, the front end of the loop being located near one of the front wheels and the rear end of the loop being located near one of the rear wheels, a ball slidable on the loop and normally positioned at either the front or rear end of the loop, one of the front wheels being provided with a laterally extending resilient finger for direct contact with the ball when it is at the front end of the loop to thereby toss the ball and cause it to slide along the loop to the rear end of the loop, one of the rear wheels being also provided with a laterally-extending resilient finger for direct contact with the ball when the ball is at the rear end of the loop to thereby toss the ball and cause it to slide along the loop to the front end of the loop, said back and forward movement of the ball occurring while both the front and rear Wheels of the vehicle are rotating in the same direction as the vehicle progresses forwardly over a supporting surface, each of the resilient fingers being in the form of a springy loop extending from the inside of the wheels, the platform being provided with a notch near one of the rear wheels to permit the passage of the finger on said wheel as the wheel is rotated, and an inclined surface on the under side of the platform near the front wheel, said surface engaging the finger on said wheel to thereby fiex the finger as said finger is moved over said inclined surface preparatory to striking the ball at the forward end of the loop.

MILTON D. SACKS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 906,471 Townsend Dec. 8, 1908 1,557,321 Parke Oct. 13, 1925 1,707,826 Tsobanacos Apr. 2, 1929 1,853,620 Johnson Apr. 12, 1932 

